


The Short Stories of Mattie and Charlie

by KittyHowell



Category: The Doctor Blake Mysteries
Genre: Drabbles, F/M, IDGAF, No idea what I’m doing, there will be more, unedited
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-29
Updated: 2019-02-04
Packaged: 2019-09-29 14:30:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17205122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KittyHowell/pseuds/KittyHowell
Summary: Drabbles of Mattie and Charlie. Other couples in the background.Chapter One: Christmas kissChapter Two: Falling in love





	1. Christmas

**Author's Note:**

> Seriously, no idea what I’m doing. But I love these two :) so I write.

Somehow, and no one is really sure how, Dr. Blake is asked and accepts to hold a Christmas party at his home. He worries how Jean will react right up until her face blossoms into pure happiness. Instantly she’s up and planning and seems as happy as can be. 

Mattie thinks she’s excited to have people over just to see how happy she is as the new Mrs. Blake. Mattie is ecstatic for her. 

Jean does most of the planning and cooking. She leaves the decorating to the men, while Mattie cleans. Jean keeps a clean home, so there’s not much to do. 

The party guests start to arrive and Mattie dashes away to change and fix herself up. Vaguely she hears Jean doing the same while Lucien distracts with alcohol, food, and music. 

When Mattie comes back down, friends she’s known for years come running up to her. Giggling with drinks in their hands, their sprits are bright. Mattie talks with them for some time before noticing Charlie in the corner of the kitchen. He’s talking, she thinks, to Lawson and Alice. He doesn’t look too happy and out of place in the four walls he calls home. She almost liked it better when he had a girlfriend, even if she hadn’t liked her much. At least he wasn’t alone then. 

She starts to walk up to them, if only to say hi, she thinks. But Alice sees her coming and steals Lawson away, nearly dragging him to the mistletoe in the corner of the living room. 

“What’s a handsome man like you doing in a place like this,” she asks, trying to be serious and failing considerably. 

He looks at her, confused, then laughs. “I think the line is ‘nice’ and not ‘handsome’.” 

“I didn’t think you very nice when we met, but handsome, sure.”

Charlie is torn between enjoying the idea she always found him handsome and hating that she once thought him mean. “And now?” 

“Well now I know you’re not nice.” Her words would sting if not for her smile and teasing tone. 

Music is playing and others are dancing in the living room, the furniture moved out of the way for the festivities. Hesitantly, he places his hand out in front of her, “Care to dance?” 

Mattie is a little surprised but quickly gets over it and accepts his hand. “That sounds..nice.” 

Charlie leads her into the living room, making sure to hold her appropriately as he spins her around the room. He pretends not to see the Blake’s watching but he can feel his ears burning. 

The song ends too soon, cheery and bright as Christmas is. He’s about to bow out, as he’s been taught to do. She doesn’t really like him, he thinks, and more than one young man is eyeing her. 

“Oi, look there,” Lawson calls out, just loud enough for the whole gathering to hear. “The tradition is a beautiful thing, if you ask me.” 

Charlie looks up only because Mattie does. There, above their heads, in a string of mistletoe that Charlie had watched Lucien place just an hour before. 

“Um, that’s not necessary,” he says, a little frantic. For Mattie’s sake, or maybe for his own. If he backs down, then Mattie doesn’t have to. Or not for fear of embarrassing him and end up doing something she doesn’t care to do. Charlie feels it’s better to run than to stand there and be rejected. 

Before he can say more, Mattie grabs him by the cloth on his shoulder and pulls him just slightly towards her. The kiss is brief, right at the corner of his mouth. He doesn’t have time to close his eyes or kiss her back. She looks at him then, with soft curls, doe eyes, and red cheeks. He almost kisses her again but she is whisked away by her friends, giggling as they go. 

The music continues to play, the party moves on. 

Charlie is in much better spirits. 

Mattie, too, it would seem.


	2. Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s funny how life works sometimes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea why I am writing these. Not edited. All mistakes are mine!

Mattie had always believed, at least subconsciously, that she might just end up with Danny if the stars had only aligned for them. 

She was no fool. She was well aware of his interest in her, almost from what she suspected was the very beginning. Her curse, as she felt it was at the time, was that she was not interested in him in the same way. 

It was a shame as others had put it. There was nothing wrong with Danny, not a single thing that Mattie could think of to deter a woman away. He was a kind, gentle man. Maybe a little gullible but caring. He had a good job where he helped people. He loved helping people more than he liked the actual job. Mattie always thought that was sweet. He was handsome, absolutely. Strong, too, though one could miss it at first. 

Mattie always saw him as a friend. A friend who happened to be handsome, strong, and reliable. She never fell in love with him but she always felt there was time. 

Word of his transfer came on a Wednesday morning. The doctor had been gone for a while and her view had been rather dull. It was quick, too quick for her liking. They heard the news Wednesday and he was gone before the next. 

Packed up and ready to go, Mattie thought, surely, this must be it! One of them will say something. Do something! They must! 

But they don’t. 

She hugs him. They say their goodbyes and he leaves with promises to come back and visit. They let each other go. 

The stars never align. 

It’s funny how life works sometimes. 

Charlie is there immediately. Mattie doesn’t like him in the slightest. He’s too much a brute, she thinks. There’s just something about him that she can’t stand. It never really occurs to her how she misses Danny and their little family. She wants the doctor to come home. 

When he does, Blake doesn’t trust him much. They get off on the wrong foot but soon they form a bond and Charlie moves into the Blake home. The relationship is rocky at times but solid. Mattie is happy. 

“Oh, Mattie,” Jean calls out to her. She’s sitting on the couch reading a book she bought just last week. The older woman is in the kitchen, carefully filling a bowl of soup. “Charlie is sick still, could you take this up to him? I have to run. Plenty in here for you too, my dear.” 

“Sure, Jean,” Mattie says easily, closing the book and setting it down on the table next to the couch. She fully intends to come back down and continue reading. Mattie takes the perfectly designed tray from Jean and starts up the stairs towards Charlie’s room. 

She knocks twice and only has to wait a moment before being allowed entrance. Charlie immediately sits up. Mattie almost tells him to relax but remembers he needs to sit up to eat and keeps her mouth shut. 

“I brought you some soup,” Mattie says, smiling. “Jean made some of her famous chicken noddle, just for you.”

“I’m honored,” he says, trying to smile and looking a little green around the gills as he does. He reaches out to take the tray from her and Mattie hesitates for just a moment before handing it over to him. 

Briefly, she remembers when Danny got bitten by the poison snake. They had nearly lost him. Mattie felt terrible for him and part of her wanted to say more than she was ready to, more than she was actually feeling at the time...Then, he’d pretended to be too ill to feed himself. Just to get her close to him. It had made her feel uncomfortable when she realized what he’d been doing, but she never spoke of it. 

“Do you need any help?” Mattie isn’t sure why she asks but she does. She looks Charlie straight in the eye, too. 

He looks confused, eyeing her a moment before chuckling out, “No, I’m good, thanks,” and starts digging in. 

She watches a moment, unsure what to do. Finally she sits down in the chair next to his bed. Lucien must have been sitting with him before. He doesn’t seem to take much notice. At the very least he doesn’t seem to mind. 

“How was your day?” 

She’s startled when he talks but smiles at the look on his face. It’s rather cute. “Um, fine. Fine so far. It’s my day off so I did some laundry and I had coffee with a friend and I was reading my new book before I came up here.” 

“Sounds lovely.” 

“How about you, are you feeling better?” Charlie had given them all a scare earlier in the week. 

“Much. I went for a jog this morning. Didn’t you see? Got some work done too, at the station.” 

Mattie laughs. 

“I obviously came back for the soup and the nice company.” Charlie pauses, a bit out of his element. “Thanks for sitting with me a bit. Been kinda lonely.” 

“How about I bring the portable TV in? You know, the one on the stand Lucien keeps pretending doesn’t exist and Jean pretends she doesn’t know about? We can watch a movie.” 

Charlie smiles so Mattie gathers the TV and some snacks before settling down in the Chair nexts to Charlie again. She shifts the seat so they’re basically sitting right next to each other. He silently shifts the blanket over to cover her but doesn’t move a single inch closer himself. 

They watch something silly, neither are sure of the name. Charlie falls asleep. Mattie isn’t certain of it until his head rolls slightly to the side, landing on her shoulder. It’s innocent and sweet. Oh so adorable. She wishes someone would take a picture. 

She continues to sit with him, letting his head rest just where it is. Mattie really can’t help the smile, or the brilliant feeling in her chest. 

The stars align. 

It’s funny how life works sometimes.


End file.
